How has the sharing economy affected the meetings industry?
The answer is, it’s affected the industry quite a lot, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Shall we start with hotels? Of course, hotels for some time were not thrilled with things like AirBnB, as this was direct competition to them. Meeting planners weren’t’ thrilled either as many were not meeting their room blocks because of attendees booking at alternative venues. However, many millennial attendees like the option.
Being smart, both hotels and planners are partnering with companies like Air BnB and the results so far are promising.
Consider what is normally done for airport transfers, or getting folks around town! Naturally, planners are working with companies like Uber and Lyft. This may be a really easy solution, with less scheduling fears as you can call for a car via your smartphone.
We all should be cautious before trying something new, but you might consider thinking about this and see if any of these will work for your next conference. Remember, that with all things, you must do your own research. This is not a solution for everyone.